Greenlee Smythe: She's Baaack
by pingponger
Summary: Greenlee turns up alive in Pine Valley, and Jake Martin is there to help her through a certain problem. From Jake's POV. Warning: this will take a real honest look at the Ryan/Greenlee sham from the perspective of someone who did used to like them.
1. Chapter 1

My life as Dr. Jake Martin was not at its highest point. My wife – or should I say my ex-wife, Amanda Dillon, left me under the weight of the dead baby lie. It was too much for us to survive together. I haven't seen her in months. It's been rough, but I'm dealing.

I'm jogging through the park when I think I see her. I don't believe it at first – I mean, she was _dead_. But when I do a double take at the woman sitting on a nearby bench, I know it's really her. She was barely over five feet tall and had long brown hair flowing down below her shoulders. Her big brown eyes had captivated me in the past and this time was no different. It was her: the one and only Greenlee Smythe.

I run over to her in excitement, barely believing it could really be her. After all, she fell off a cliff in Connecticut less than a year ago; presumed dead to the world.

She sees me coming up to her, but looks confused.

"Greenlee!" I practically jumped for joy. "I can't believe it's you!"

A blank stare engulfs her face. "I'm sorry, do I know you?" she asks me.


	2. Chapter 2

It seems her memory was stuck somewhere in 1999. The fall must have given her amnesia. She explained to me how a couple of weeks ago she had started remembering parts of her life. One day it was her 5th birthday party – celebrated with only her nanny of course. A couple days later she remembered her first day at high school. Apparently, everything was coming to her in order some chunks at a time. That morning she remembered that her grandfather had wanted her to come to Pine Valley, so she went to the Greenlee Mansion only to find it empty. That was when she went to the park to think.

She was so relieved that I found her there. She didn't know anything about her life past deciding to come to Pine Valley and was happy to have met someone claiming to be her friend. Being a doctor, I realized that her memory was coming back on its own and there was no need to force it; and I also realized that telling her about her life might do more harm than good considering all the pain she had been through over the years. So I decided to take her somewhere without explaining why, hoping it might do some good.

_Knock knock_.

I heard the footsteps of a large man coming towards the door. He was over six feet tall and had muscles in places that no one ever heard of.

"Who is it?" he asked before opening the door.

"It's Jake," I answer. "I brought someone here to see you."

"Now isn't really a good time, Jake," he calls to me through the closed door.

But I press on: "Please, Ryan. It's important." I know he would want to know that his fiancée is really alive.

He opens the door wearing only a towel and his face drops in shock when he sees Greenlee standing next to me.

"Hello, I'm Greenlee Smythe," she tells him nervously, feeling awkward at not knowing why she is there. I remember when I first met her – that girl would flirt up a storm with anyone and never ever felt uncomfortable no matter what the situation. But not knowing who this guy was and why she should know him apparently took all the comfortableness right out of her. That was always Greenlee – she liked to be in control of a situation. But now she was anything but in control.

"Who is it, Ryan?" a woman's voice calls from inside. I look in and see Erica Kane there, wearing only a bathrobe. Ryan Lavery and Erica Kane??? I almost throw up in my mouth at the thought.

Ryan's expression gets very defensive and he starts apologizing profusely to Greenlee about something or other. I don't really understand what he is saying because all my concern is on my friend standing next to me. She seems unaffected by what she saw but remains very uncomfortable around this unfamiliar man.

"I'm sorry, but I don't know you," she finally tells him.

She asks me if we can go and I agree. She heads back to the car and I apologize to Ryan and explain her memory loss to him. He seems like he feels sorry but quickly closes the door and looks like he is ready to carry on the fun with the woman waiting for him inside. Good old typical Ryan.

I get in the car with Greenlee and think about where to go next.

"I'm sorry," she tells me, obviously upset at herself for not understanding what just happened. "But I didn't feel comfortable there."

"But you feel comfortable with me?" I ask. "Why?"

She tells me she can't explain it; it's just a feeling that she has. She trusts me because I look at her like I care about her, and she doesn't remember anyone looking at her like that in her entire life.

I smile at her vulnerability. It's a side of her that she rarely shows anyone.

"Where are we going now?" she asks me, smiling that big beautiful smile for the first time since I found her. I think for a moment before realizing that I've been staring at that infectious smile of hers, surprising myself – where did that come from? I shake it off and tell her that I'm going to take her home, even though she may not know what that means.

It doesn't take long for us to reach her building. After stopping at the apartment of the owner of the building to pick up a key, I take her to the floor of her penthouse and walk her to her door.

"Could you stay with me tonight, Jake?" she wants to know. "I just feel really comfortable and safe with you around and I haven't felt that in a long time."

"What are friends for?" I answer with a smile. I show her to her room and watch her eyes brighten up at seeing her closet – with enough clothing in there to last a year and still not wear anything twice.

"I'll go wait out there," I tell her, even though for some reason that I can't explain I really don't want to leave. I go out to the living room and look around for the remote – no luck. I walk over to the television to turn it on but the power button is broken. Oh well – I'll go lie down on the couch and relax a little while Greenlee is having fun rediscovering her wardrobe.

"Yoo hoo," I hear Greenlee's voice cooing from the doorway. "What do you think?"

My eyes almost popped out of their sockets when I saw her standing there.

"I did a little dress up," she tells me. "Or more accurately, a little dress down."

Holy crap she looks amazing. She is wearing a red silk top that shows a red bra underneath, and matching panties below. Looks like she really has no comfort issues with me after all – which means the 1999 flirty Greenlee is back full force.

"Whoa," I stand up and back away instinctively. This is not a place where I want to go.

"I can't remember a guy ever backing away from me like that?" she laughs. "What is it? Am I married or something?"

"No, no, that's not it," I stutter, but find myself unable to take my eyes off of her.

She calmly walks up to me, letting her silk top drop to the floor as she walked.

"You said we were friends, Jake," she tells me seductively. "So we should act friendly."

Her finger starts to caress my face. My mind is screaming at me to stop her but I can't bring myself to do it.

Her lips are pressed against mine now – and it's scaring me. I'm feeling things for her that I thought were dead and buried; I thought I was completely over her.

She takes my hand and is bringing it onto her cheek. Then she slowly moves it down her soft skin… down, down…

"No, I can't," I tell her unconvincingly, finally gaining a tiny bit of self control. I walk around her, taking the long way back to the couch where I park myself down. She comes and sits next to me, feeling completely comfortable around me even with her lack of clothing.

"Is it something I should know about, Jake?" she tells me in her normal tone. Thank God she turned off her seductress voice because I don't know if I can handle any more of that. "Is it me? Do you not find me attractive?"

I shake my head at her. The most beautiful woman I've ever met is coming onto me, wearing only a bra and panties no less, and I'm saying no!?! What the hell is wrong with me???

"Jake, tell me what it is?"

I try to answer her but can't find the words. I excuse myself and run to the bathroom where I grab a robe to bring back to her.

"Listen, Greenlee," I start to tell her as I hand her the robe. She only lays it on her lap so I wrap it over her shoulders myself. She may be comfortable carrying on a normal conversation in her underwear, but I don't think I can handle it for too long. "Of course I find you attractive. So does every guy with a pulse. But I'm not going to take advantage of you either."

"It's not taking advantage of me," she pleads to me. "If anything, I'm taking advantage of you. I've been feeling so confused and alone for so long; and I want to feel wanted, and being with you today made me feel really good. I want to hold onto this feeling that I'm getting by being with you."

I understand where she is coming from. She has spent the last bunch of months not knowing a soul and I know how 1999 Greenlee feels; she has a lot of the same issues that she had when we were together all those years ago. I put my arm around her shoulder and pull her close, letting her head rest under my chin.

"You forget already that I am your friend, Greenlee Smythe. Which means I know you pretty well. And I also know that you will regret this once you get all your memory back, so we are going to have to leave it alone."

Greenlee seems to sense the disappointment in my voice and looks me straight in the eyes.

"Is that it, Jake? Have we had sex before and I broke your heart?"

Boy, she isn't one to mince words, huh? She goes straight for the knife through the heart. I find myself running my fingers back and forth through her soft hair, enjoying feeling close to her again. I tell her that she has pretty much just summed up our past relationship with that one sentence, but don't tell her any more – it's for her to find out on her own.

"And I respect you too much to do anything to hurt our friendship now," I tell her. My mouth says the right words, but something inside me tells me they are wrong – that I want her right now more than I've ever wanted anyone.

Greenlee looks at me with tears in her eyes.

"No one has ever respected me that much," she tells me. "All the guys I used to know – at least that I remember knowing – they would all just use me for my body and then chuck me away. Why are you so different, Jake?"

I can't put into words to her exactly why, but something inside me has an answer: because I already know how this story turns out.

Greenlee looks at peace in my arms. "I must be an idiot to ever let a great guy like you get away," she tells me. Those words make me feel so good, even though I know she won't mean it anymore once she remembers everything. "Is it okay if I sleep here in your arms tonight? I like that I'm feeling close to someone and I want to hold onto this feeling for as long as I can."

I don't have much of a choice. Am I supposed throw the beautiful barely clothed lady off of me??? Besides, I want to hold onto this feeling too.


	3. Chapter 3

"Jake!" Greenlee screams in my ear. "Jake, wake up!"

She is still on top of me. I can tell from the small bit of light coming though the window that it must be morning already.

"Jake, I remember! You need to help me!" she cries.

I don't have the slightest clue what she's talking about. "Greenlee, calm down. What do you need my help for?"

Greenlee is hysterical. "What do you mean, 'what do you need my help for?' Wade could show up any minute!"

My mind goes to work: Who's Wade??? She looks scared out of her mind right now.

"I remember, Jake!" Greenlee is frantic in my arms. "He was threatening me! He was onto the scam and… oh my God! Leo too! We have to find Leo and warn him!"

Now I remember. Wade Randall was the guy Greenlee got in trouble with for that loan with IncrebileDreams.

"Jake, we need to find Leo. I… I can't lose Leo!" she tells me in a panic. Looks like Greenlee's memory is somewhere in 2000 now. I don't know the story so well, but I can see the look in her eyes: she is desperate to save Leo… she is in love with Leo.

"It's okay, calm down," I tell her softly and calmingly, knowing my time is over. It felt nice to be the man that Greenlee wanted for one night, but now that she remembered Leo, that was all over. "Don't worry; your memory hasn't caught up to present day yet. You're just remembering more about your past. You survived Wade just fine and he isn't a menace to anyone else anymore."

"But Leo," she tells me still in worry. "Where is Leo? I have to find Leo!"

I stroke her hair to try and give her the same safe feeling that I gave her last night. "I promise Leo survived Wade too – anything else you need to remember on your own."

She looks calmer now as she tries to slow down her rapid breathing. She finally smiles at me. "I remember you now," she tells me. "You're married to the princess."

"Not anymore," I explain to her much more easily than I expected. What happened with Gillian doesn't seem to hurt anymore. "She left me for Ryan."

Greenlee laughs at me.

"You think that's funny, Greenlee?"

"No," she stops laughing long enough to answer. "But we saw Ryan and Erica together last night. That's freaking hysterical!"

I laugh along with her, happy she is enjoying herself. She might change her tune though when her memory advances to the present. Finally, she picks herself up off of me, to which I curse under my breath. I can't deny it anymore that I want her in my arms. She thanks me for calming her down and for being so nice and goes off to her room to change. I reach for the phone and call Jack – I don't want to tell her about her past any more than I have to, but Jackson needs to know that his daughter is alive. I tell him everything that happened yesterday, from finding her in the park to taking care of her all night. He tells me he is on his way over – perfect since I need to be off to the hospital anyway – but I tell him first that it's better for her to let her remember things on her own; that he shouldn't tell her any more than he has too. She is already going to flip as it is when she finds out that Jackson, not Roger Smythe, is her father. That plus her memory already advancing this morning was enough to deal with for one day.

Greenlee finally comes back out wearing a tight pink dress. The girl looks stunning to me as always.

She tells me that she wants to look her best today, hoping I could get her to Leo wherever he is. I struggle around the words. How do I tell her that Leo died saving her life? I can't do that to her. But her memory is advancing, she already remembers loving him.

"Can you tell me how things end up with Leo?" she asks me. "My mind is up to where he and Becca broke up. And I know that he loves me… I just know it. But how does it all turn out?"

"Oh, he loves you," I tell her. "He loves you more than life itself."

Greenlee claps her hands together excitedly and proclaims how she knew it all along. "So where is he, Jake? Where can I find him?"

Now what do I tell her??? Don't worry Greenlee but Leo is dead and Ryan has moved on to his new flavor of the month but it's all okay because I think I'm in love with you again???

"He's out of the country right now," I try not to give her a complete lie. "And I can't tell you anymore about your relationship so don't ask, okay?"

She looks disappointed but seems content for now with the knowledge that Leo loves her back.

_Knock knock_

Greenlee opens the door to find Jackson standing there. I watch him give her the biggest hug of her life as she stands dumbfounded at the door. She looks at Jack like he is crazy and backs up uncomfortably next to me. At least she still seems to trust me and feel safe with me.

I repeat to Jackson that he isn't to tell her anything that's not essential and then sit Greenlee down next to me on the couch, where I tell her the bare minimum I can about Jackson being her father. She looks willing to hear it from me and thanks me for being such a good friend to her – like that's all I want to be anymore; but I know she'll never see me as more.

I leave her on the couch with Jackson as I take off for the hospital, turning around at the door to take one last look at her before I go. She is looking at me too – she doesn't want me to leave, I can see it in her eyes. But I know it's because I'm the only one she trusts right now; nothing that a few more memories can't fix.


	4. Chapter 4

I'm feeling worn out. Yes it's true that doctors get paid well, but it is hard work! After being on my feet all day seeing patients, I'm happy to finally be able to call it a day. Besides, I really want to go stop by the penthouse and check on Greenlee. Even though I know she is in good hands with Jackson, that hasn't stopped me from worrying about her ever since I left her with him this morning. I hope she's doing okay without me.

"How's it going, Jake?" my friend, Dr. Paul Gordon greets me. I tell him everything is fine but I need to hurry out to check on a friend.

"Yeah, I heard about your friend, Greenlee," he tells me, somehow knowing who I was talking about. "They barely got to her in time. Good thing Dr. Hayward took care of her."

I don't understand. "What are you talking about, Gordon?" I ask him worriedly.

"Greenlee Smythe. She was brought in to the ER this afternoon. You didn't know?"

I throw my lab coat back on and rush to the ER. How come no one told me about this??? A nurse tells me where I can find Greenlee and I burst into her room. I see Jack sitting in a corner and Greenlee lying on the bed with her eyes open: she has clearly been doing a lot of crying.

She notices me come in and lets the tears flow again. "What happened, sweetie?" I ask her. "Why are you here?"

She looks too pained to tell me so I turn to Jack. "I don't know," he tells me. "One minute we were sitting and talking and the next thing I know she starts crying up a storm and runs to the bathroom. I got worried and found her in there unconscious and called 9-1-1. They had to pump her stomach because she overdosed on painkillers."

David Hayward comes into the room. He is not happy to see me there – we don't get along.

"Hayward saved her life," Jack says thankfully.

"You should have told me she was here, Hayward!" I yell at him.

"She's still my family!" he yells back. "I care about her too much to let you get in the way!"

Greenlee's crying interrupts our argument.

"I'm sorry, Greenlee," I tell her, taking her hand and kissing it. "I didn't mean to upset you."

Greenlee looks up at her father and David. "Please leave Jake and me alone?" she asks them. David especially doesn't want to leave me alone with her, but Greenlee is in too much pain to argue with right now.

"Greenlee, what happened to you?" I ask her again.

She looks at me through her tear stained eyes. "I remember," she chokes out. "I watched him die."

"Leo," I realize. "I'm sorry. I wanted to protect you from this."

She looks a little bit better now than she did when I first came in. I guess my being there is helping her deal with all this, but she is still clearly in a lot of pain.

"I remembered it," she tells me sadly. "And I couldn't take it. The emptiness was too much to bear; I needed a way out."

"Do you still need a way out?" I ask her, afraid of what the answer might be. I remember this time in her life when she was suicidal over Leo's death. David got her through it then.

"I realize now that I can go on," she tells me. "Because I don't remember Jack being my dad so I know I make it that far." She pauses as tears start falling again. "But that doesn't mean it hurts any less."

"I know," I tell her, trying to be her source of comfort again. She tries to smile at me. She could always communicate so much through her big beautiful brown eyes – most gorgeous eyes I'd ever seen. I had thought that ever since the first time I saw her. Now her eyes were filled with pain and yet also a small measure of comfort.

"Don't leave me, Jake," she pleads. "I remember David being my brother-in-law, and I remember some things with Jackson, but they are all just memories; I don't feel it. I only feel with you."

"I'll be here with you as long as you need," I tell her softly.

"Greenlee! Oh my God, Greenlee!" I hear a female voice behind me. "It's you! You're really alive!" she screams happily.

I turn my head to see Kendall there with Zach and Ryan right behind her. Kendall rushes up to the hospital bed and hugs a flustered Greenlee.

I can see that she wants to yell at Kendall to take a flying leap, but doesn't have the resolve right now.

I tap Kendall on the back to get her attention. "Greenlee doesn't think of you as a friend, Kendall. Her memory is stuck right now where Leo just died."

Kendall looks at me with shock and then looks to Greenlee. All she can see on her face is pain; no relief in her coming.

"Come on," Zach tells her as the voice of reason. "We aren't going to do Greenlee any good by being here."

The two of them walk out but Ryan remains behind. He looks extremely uncomfortable and asks me for time alone to talk to Greenlee. I try to explain to him again that Greenlee doesn't remember loving him, but he wants time alone with her nonetheless.

I start to walk out but Greenlee calls for me to stop. She doesn't want me to leave. I shrug outwardly while smiling inwardly at her insistence on my being there.

Ryan doesn't look too pleased but he sits down next to the bed anyway. I watch him apologize for last night and tell her that he really does love her and wants to marry her, if she'll still have him. His words only seem to cause her more pain though.

"Okay, back off, Ryan," I tell him from behind, pulling lightly on his arm to encourage him to leave. "You aren't helping. She doesn't remember loving you, only Leo dying; and coming in here and basically asking her to marry you isn't what she needs to hear about right now."

Ryan seems to resolve himself to that fact and leaves the room.

"Thank you for that, Jake," Greenlee tells me. She looks grateful that I am here to look out for her.

"Do I love him?" she asks me. "I mean, when my memory catches up, am I going to be in love with Ryan?"

"I think so," I answered her regretfully. I wish it was me that she loved, but that didn't seem possible.


	5. Chapter 5

I'm sitting bare-chested on Greenlee's couch. She is on top of me wearing her matching red bra and panties from the night that I found her and is moving my hand across her soft skin.

"Don't you want me, Jake?" she tells me. Her eyes sparkle at me. She leans her head in and starts to lay kisses all over my chest.

I find my hand gliding up her leg as she sits on my lap. Her head turns up towards my face and I melt. "You are so perfect," I tell her. I grab her face and pull hers towards mine. Her taste is like something unlike anything I have ever experienced with anyone else. Her smell sends me to places I can't describe. Her touch is the most magnificent thing I have ever felt.

"Tell me again," she orders.

"You're perfect," I repeat. "In every way possible." I kiss her again, savoring every moment. I can feel myself soaring as her tongue battles with mine. Her hand glides down my chest until it stops at my pants. She grabs a hold of the zipper and...

_Ring ring_

I wake up in a hot sweat. Oh no, it was only a dream, I realize. Damn the phone for waking me up.

I reach over to the stand next to my bed where the phone sits.

"Morning," I answer.

It's her on the other end. I have the urge to tell her I was just dreaming about her, but I think twice about it and do the smart thing, keeping it to myself.

Greenlee tells me she has remembered more and wants to talk to me about it. I try to explain to her that she is probably past the part where I already left Pine Valley so anything more about her life I only know secondhand from Greenlee herself. She is undaunted and tells me I'm the only one she feels like she can talk to, so I agree to meet her in the park if she will give me 30 minutes.

I need to take a long cold shower first.

When I finally make it to the park, I see Greenlee there waiting for me. She looked lost in thought before seeing me but brightens up when she notices me coming towards her. She is wearing a button down purple dress shirt and has her hair waving down behind it. Why does she always have to look so amazing??? This would be so much easier if she could have an off day or something.

She hugs me, much to my delight – it's nice to be the one she trusts – and I sit down with her on a bench.

"Thanks for coming, Jake," she greets me with a wide smile. Her face is bright but her eyes give away a certain emptiness.

"I'd do anything for you," I tell her before I realize what I'm even saying. "Tell me what you remembered."

She explains to me how the last thing she remembers is running away after ripping off Kendall's dress in court. She says that the last feeling she has from her memory is feeling empty again – like she has no one in her corner. "But I'm okay," she tells me. "Because I know there is more to the story that I don't know yet. My life can't turn out so empty because I have you, right? That's why I needed to see you today, Jake. I know I can get through all this as long as you're here supporting me."

I pull her close and let her wrap her arms around my waste, happy to be the reason that she feels good. She deserves nothing but the best.

"This feels nice," she tells me; and I can't help but agree. I ask her what she wants to do – I'm more than willing to play hooky for her today. This can even be chalked up to spending time with a patient and her medical treatment.

She just wants to sit next to me for a while. I run my fingers over the top of her head and she seems to enjoy it. She looks up at me with a comfortable smile and I instinctively lower my head down to where she lies against me. Before I know it my lips are brushing against hers.

It takes a second for me to realize what I'm doing, but as soon as I do I jump back off of the bench in fear and start apologizing profusely for crossing the line.

Greenlee doesn't look startled or shocked by the kiss, but she doesn't look like she is begging for seconds either. But it's also hard for me to read her with my mind racing to come up with some kind of save or explanation.

"I'm sorry. I should go," I finally tell her.

"No, wait!" She won't let me leave. I can't believe it but she looks like she still feels comfortable with me. She begs me to sit down next to her again and I do.

"You still love me," she realizes, once again not beating around the bush. She puts her hand on my cheek; now she is the one trying to make me feel comfortable.

"I do," I tell her. The words come out easily, much more easily than I thought they would. There is nothing left to run from. "I need to ask you something, Greenlee. And I need you to be completely honest with me."

Greenlee nods at me. She tells me that me whether I'm in love with her or not doesn't change the fact that she feels like I'm the only person she can trust completely. She feels like I deserve total honesty.

It's time to put my heart out there and find out if there was ever any chance for me. "If we take Leo out of the equation and say he never existed, do you think you could have been in love with me?"

She thinks for a minute. The longer her silence lasts, the less hope I feel.

"Okay, I think I know your answer," I tell her.

"No you don't," she pulls me back. "Because I don't know, okay. I don't know. You know I wanted to love you back then, but I couldn't because of Leo; I can't reprogram everything and take him out of the past, I just can't."

I look at her beautiful face sadly. "I should go," I stand up and turn around.

"No!" she pulls on my arm not letting me go. I turn to face her and she grabs me by the neck and pulls my face down to hers. She kisses me intensely, knowing she is breaking me down. I can't help but kiss her back. She is everything I've ever wanted, I realize that now. I had to force it out of me before because it was pointless to want her, but lately she has been letting me feel so close.

She lets my lips free and pulls me back down with her onto the bench.

"I can't lose you, Jake," she pleads to me. "Give me another chance to love you?"

This time it's not a dream. This time Greenlee Smythe is sitting next to me in the flesh asking for a chance with me to make it work.

"I can't take that chance, Greenlee," I tell her as I stroke her hair. "Because we've done this story before. You'll leave me once you remember loving Ryan the same way you left me for Leo. When you remember him, I'll be left out in the cold and I don't think I can go through that with you again."

"No, you can't know that!" she goes on unconvinced. "I know that no matter how much you tell me I love Ryan, he's not Leo. Look, all I know is even with getting some memories back, the only person I feel with – that makes me feel safe – is you. Ryan, Jack, David; I don't feel anything with them, but I feel connected to you. I can't lose you, Jake, so if it takes me loving you to keep you then please give me the chance to find out?"

"I'm sorry," I tell her. "I just can't. I'll always be your friend, Greenlee. Nothing will ever change that. But you will regret this when you get all your memories back."

I can't believe I just did that. I walk away from her shaking my head. How did I just turn down Greenlee Smythe???

She catches up to me from behind and asks me to wait.

"You're right, Jake," she tells me. "I'm the amnesiac here and I don't know what I want at the moment. But I do know that your friendship means everything to me right now so please don't walk away? We can hang out today as friends like we were doing before and do the most unromantic, anti-sexy thing you can think of."

I look back at her and melt into her big brown eyes. Doesn't she know it's impossible for her to not be sexy???

"Come on," I smile at her. "We'll think of something." She comes up next to me and throws my arm over her shoulder and leans up against my side as she walks.

Oh boy, am I in trouble or what?


	6. Chapter 6

I'm taking my lunch break in the hospital when Ryan comes running up to me.

"Do you know where Greenlee is?" he wants to know. His tone seems a little panicky.

I tell him I haven't and offer him the seat next to me and a glass of water – he is looking kind of pale. But Ryan turns me down. He is too worried about Greenlee right now.

"I know you two are pretty close and that she trusts you right now," he explains to me. "So I thought maybe she came to see you."

I'm still not following Ryan's train of thought. He can't find Greenlee so she must have come to see me??? Why did he seem so worried then???

"I think I'm still a couple steps behind you, Ryan," I tell him. "What's going on?"

He tells me the whole story. He went to Greenlee's penthouse today to see her. It started out okay and he was thrilled that she at least remembered him as a friend, but sometime while they were talking Greenlee suddenly lost it on him and ran out. He tells me he is really worried about her.

Now I'm worried too. She must have gotten more of her memory back, but where is her head at now???

"I checked all of our favorite places," Ryan tells me. "And I can't find her anywhere. She isn't answering her cell either."

Now my worry has turned into panic. I race out of the lounge to the front desk and Ryan follows close behind.

"Hey," I tell the receptionist while short of breath. "Has Greenlee Smythe been brought into the hospital today? She was here last week for a medication overdose."

"No, Dr. Martin, she hasn't," the receptionist answers me.

"Okay, thank you," I tell her. "If she does get brought in, I want you to call me on my cell right away."

The receptionist nods at me and I turn to Ryan. I tell him that if he wants to be productive, he can go back to Greenlee's place in case she returns there. Really though, I need to get rid of him. If Greenlee suddenly got so freaked out by being around Ryan, it must be that she remembered how they ended – and she is purposely trying to avoid him. And I think I know where she may have gone.

It doesn't take me too long to reach the spot where Ryan played daredevil on his motorcycle. Greenlee is sitting there, perfectly still, not too far from the edge of the cliff.

I come up beside her and sit next to her.

"I scared myself today, Jake," she tells me without even looking at me. "I was talking to Ryan when my memory jumped again. I remember leaving town over Ryan and Kendall's baby and everything before that."

I put my hand on her shoulder. "Tell me what scared you."

She turns her head to look at me. The nerves are written all over her face.

"I remember what happened when I told Ryan I was pregnant," she says to me. I'm having a hard time reading her now, but I can tell that it isn't her lost baby that she is sad about. "I remember him holding me against that dresser and threatening to hit me if I didn't abort the baby. I remember him taking a dive off this very cliff. I remember how much it hurt to be a widow again, and to watch him die the same way I watched Leo die."

I don't know where she's going with this. I've already seen her pained over her memories, but this time was different.

"Tell me why you scared yourself?" I repeat my question. I want so badly to make everything okay for her.

"Because you've been telling me and he's been telling me that we were engaged when I went missing. How could that happen? Am I just a sucker for abuse that I had to go back to a man who did that to me? I thought I had more self respect than that, Jake. But I guess not. I guess I really haven't grown at all."

"That's not true," I tell her authoritatively. "You are an amazing woman, Greenlee. You have grown so much from when I first met you into being an unbelievably strong person, who has gone through so much in her life and survived it all."

She smiles at me with so much affection that I can't help but smile back. She leans over and rests her chin on my shoulder. "A girl could fall in love with you, Jake Martin, you know that?"

It looks like I was able to make her feel better about herself. She kisses my cheek slowly. Was that a thank you kiss??? It seemed a little long for a thank you kiss. But of course, her memories are coming back. It won't matter soon enough anyway.

"So how do you feel about Ryan right now?" I ask her. If her memory is somewhere in 2006 or 2007, it could be she is back in love with Ryan already.

"I don't know," she tells me honestly. "Maybe once I get the whole picture back I'll be able to tell you."

I feel good at her answer. She might not love me, but I can enjoy being the most important person in her life for a little while longer. She seems to notice that and laughs at me. I'm glad I can be the one to make her feel good about herself again; but I wish I could be more to her.

"You don't want to know what I feel for you?" she asks me out of the blue.

My eyes almost pop at the question. I didn't see that one coming from a mile away, but I guess I shouldn't be too surprised with Greenlee.

"With you," she tells me with a smile. "I feel safe, and warm, and loved. And I feel like I trust you completely; like I can tell you absolutely anything. And there is something else; something I can't put my finger on that's been eating at me lately. I'm not trying to get your hopes up or anything, Jake, you know, because of what happened in the park. But you've been so unbelievable, so I just think you deserve to know a hundred percent of where I'm at; and that part of me is rooting for you."

I'll take what I can get.


	7. Chapter 7

I come into Confusion after ending my shift at the hospital.

After taking a step inside I stop in my tracks. Greenlee stands up from a table straight ahead of me and walks away; she looks like she's headed for the ladies room. She doesn't see me, but Jackson does. He had been sitting across from Greenlee and waves me over. It's nice that the two of them seem to be getting to know each other again while Greenlee is still waiting for all of her memories to come back.

"Please sit with me, Jake?" Jackson asks me. He doesn't seem overly happy to see me; more like he has an overprotective father type look. Not that I can blame him given what his daughter is going through.

I pull up a chair so as not to sit in Greenlee's vacated seat. I wonder exactly what Jackson wants to talk to me about, but I'm sure that the general topic involves a certain gorgeous petite brunette.

"So, Jake," he tells me while he plays with his fingers – a classic nervous thing to do. Something must really make him uncomfortable with me. Either that or something about Greenlee is making him nervous. I hope nothing is wrong.

"As I doctor, can you give me your honest medical opinion on how my daughter is doing? Is she really going to remember everything and move on with her life?"

"Why don't you tell me what you think?" I ask. I know that medically speaking she has nothing to worry about. It's all about how things are going psychologically, and I'm curious on his perspective on how Greenlee is acclimating to him.

"I'm worried about her as her father," he admits. "But I don't think anything is wrong with her."

I tell him that my medical opinion is the same thing. Jackson has nothing to worry about.

He thanks me for telling him that. It's good to hear it from a medical professional. I begin to stand up to leave. Greenlee could come back any second and I don't want to interrupt the father-daughter bonding, but Jackson stops me. He explains that now that he has talked to me as Jake Martin the doctor, he wants to talk to me as Jake Martin the friend of his daughter.

"Greenlee and I are getting back there," he says to me. "But I can't help but notice where her priorities are right now. The only topic she gets excited to talk about is, well… you." He looks uncomfortable saying that to me. I understand where he is going with this, and that he is just worried about Greenlee because he loves her. "It seems like Greenlee has gotten pretty attached to you, Jake. And I just want to make sure you understand what's going on because I don't want to see her get hurt."

I assure him that I don't want to see Greenlee get hurt any more than he does, but that doesn't look like it's enough for him. He thinks I don't understand what he means, even though I really do, but it's a subject I would rather not talk about and get my hopes up for. Jackson tells me he thinks Greenlee might be growing too attached to me, in a way that's more than friendship, and he doesn't want to see me hurt her. He wants me to make sure she knows I care about her, but not in a way that will get her too involved with me. He has seen her hurt too many times to let it happen again, no matter how well meaning I may be in trying to help her through all this.

I smile to myself and mumble how I wish what he was saying was the truth.

"What was that?" Jackson wants to know what I said.

I look at him straight in the eyes and promise him that I would never hurt her. Then I lean back in my chair and look away as I tell him regretfully that he has nothing to worry about because before long she'll be completely back to her old self and in love with Ryan anyway.

"That's a reason I shouldn't worry?" he tells me sarcastically before his tone turns serious. "She already remembers being married to him, and yet I can see clear as day that you are the one that she cares about right now, not him. So please promise me that you'll let her down easily before it's too late."

I decide to come clean with him. At least it will ease his fears somewhat, but I know I'm not the one he should be worried about when it comes to hurting Greenlee. It does make sense that she would become attached to me because I'm the one who found her and I'm the one who she has been relying on, but I can't know if that's all it is until she is back to her old self. And in my heart, I can't shake the belief that when everything comes back to her, I won't even merit a thought. "I would never hurt Greenlee," I repeat to him. "And if by some miracle you're right and she truly does care about me as more than a friend, then I'll consider it the luckiest day of my life because that's the way I feel about her."

Jackson becomes visibly startled. That was a bombshell he didn't see coming.

"Do you still see me as Greenlee's friend?" I ask with a slight smirk. Telling this kind of thing to a father isn't the best way to get on his good side.

He takes a deep breath after the surprise wears off. "I think I'd take you any day of the week over Lavery," he tells me.

I see him look up in recognition at someone. I turn around to see Greenlee on her way back to the table. Her face brightens up when she sees I'm there. Maybe Jackson is right??? Maybe I do have a chance??? I push those thoughts aside quickly. Being her best friend right now is enough for me.

I stand up to give her and Jackson their privacy again and end up walking right into a hug from Greenlee. She insists that I join them, but I politely turn her down. I can get my drink somewhere else. It's more important for her to be spending quality time with her father right now.

I begin to walk away but I can hear Greenlee behind me asking Jackson to give her a minute. She catches up to me when I reach the door.

"Hey," she grabs my arm. She looks at me like she is worried about me. "Is everything okay, Jake?" she asks me. I tell her that everything is fine but she looks unconvinced. She says that she sees sadness in my eyes and wants to be there for me if there is anything she can do to help, just like I've been doing for her. I think I realize what it is that gave off that impression. I may have thought that telling Jackson how I feel would be a good cleansing for me; a way to get the truth out there so it didn't have to weigh me down. But now it's real. When it was just between me and Greenlee that was one thing, because I know that no matter what we will always have our friendship to fall back on. But now Jackson has expectations too. Maybe things would never be able to go back to the way they were.

Greenlee begins to smile at me. "You told Jackson," she realizes, almost sounding proud of me. "Jake Martin threw his hat into the ring and asked my father how he would feel about the two of us being together."

"Close enough," I admit with a shrug.

"But this is a good thing," she laughs. "At least I think it's a good thing, anyway. Why are you looking so out of it?"

I know she doesn't mean to do it, but now she's just teasing me. Doesn't she realize how hard it is to talk openly with her about the relationship I wish we could have??? I tell her that I should go so she can get back to Jackson but she doesn't let me leave yet. "You have plans yet tonight, Jake?" she asks me without really asking me. I tell her I have nothing I can't hold off on so she tells me that the two of us are going out. Maybe see a movie from the past two years that I know she loved. I look into her eyes and smile. I just can't say no to her.

"Great," she tells me excitedly. "I'm going to cheer you up, Jake Martin. No one I care about is going to spend a night moping all alone. I'll call you when I finish here, okay?"

She scampers back over to Jackson with a little extra hop in her step. It takes me a few moments to realize that I'm staring at her once again. How could I not??? It's not just her looks. It's her sassiness and her exuberance. Those traits of hers weren't the same when I came back to Pine Valley. But now she was looking like her true old self, and she hasn't even gotten all her memories back yet! I can't remember seeing her that lively since…

I sigh as I finish that thought. That's Leo's Greenlee that I'm looking at. That's the girl who would take on the world during her lunch break – just because she could. That's the fire and joy in her eyes that I can see now. It's the one that was missing during the time I saw her with Ryan.

I shake my head at myself and turn around to leave. I tell myself that I must be seeing what I want to see. Am I really that desperate to believe that I could cause all this??? Am I just seeing things the way that I wish they were instead of how they really are???

I guess I'll find out soon enough.


	8. Chapter 8

Another day at the hospital is come and gone. Time to pack up and go. I head to my father's office – he's been on vacation this week so I've been using it for myself.

I open the door and see Greenlee sitting in my father's chair with her feet up on the desk. She appears to be reading a medical journal, but she looks way too happy to really be reading – I know this stuff bores her to death.

"You're looking all right," she tells me without bothering to take her face out of the journal. "For a guy that got pulled out of a war zone."

She drops her "reading material" on the desk – her smile is so wide it's practically lighting up the room.

"You remember?" I ask her with mixed feelings. A part of me was dreading this day – but she looks so happy; happier than I remember seeing her in a very long time.

"I remember everything!" she screams happily. She runs around the desk and jumps into my arms in pure joy. I spin her light body around in my arms, reveling in her contagious excitement.

I put her down but don't know what to say next. She brushes her hair out of her face and looks to be eagerly waiting for me to say something specific.

She finally gives up on waiting for me and pulls me over to the seat in front of the desk, sitting me down and then sitting herself on my lap.

Now I'm really feeling out of place. What in the world is going on???

She laughs at me, seeming to realize how awkward I'm feeling right now.

"I remember everything, and I remember feeling everything," she repeats to me.

It's kind of hard for me to focus on what she's saying right now, what with her sitting on my lap and her lips less than a foot away from mine.

"There is only one way to get through to you, isn't there?" she laughs again and puts her finger over my mouth. My forehead starts to sweat. What is she doing???

She holds her finger over my mouth and then leans in and starts kissing me. Greenlee is kissing me!!!

She backs off and raises an eyebrow at me, expecting some kind of reaction. All I can think of to say is one word: "Wow."

"That about covers it," she giggles and licks her lips.

"I don't understand," I tell her. "What about Ryan? Don't you remember being in love with Ryan?"

She looks at me like I'm crazy. "I'm sitting on your lap and kissing you and you want to talk about Ryan? You know, for a doctor, you're not all that smart."

"Greenlee." Now I'm the one looking at her like she's crazy. "You know why I'm bringing this up. You know how I feel about you, but I need to make sure you are right there with me; that this is the real thing."

"I know," she tells me. "That's why I went to see Ryan as soon as I remembered everything. I had to be sure, you know? And now I am. You're the guy for me, Jake Martin; if you'll have me."

"I don't understand," I tell her while I rub my hand against her back as she sits comfortably in my lap.

She shakes her head at me with a smile. She can't believe that I still want to talk; and I can't either. My heart is screaming at me: Kiss her, Jake!!! Kiss her with everything you've got!!!

Greenlee sighs, looking resigned to the fact that I want the whole story.

"Okay," she tells me. "I think this amnesia thing was the best thing that could have happened to me, because remembering everything in such a short amount of time, it let me see my life and what I was doing as a big picture instead of only living in the moment like I had been; it helped me figure a lot of things out."

"Go on?" I request in hopeful anticipation.

"It took seeing my life in perspective like that to figure out what I was doing, and I get it now. I was just so lonely after Leo died that I was going to do anything to feel wanted like that again. Pablo gave me that for a little bit, but then Ryan helped chase him off and I felt like if I ever had another chance to be loved and wanted again, it had be from him – cause no one else ever gave me the time back then except him. I felt like it was either Ryan or be lonely forever, so I made him want me; it helped me fill myself up and cover my loneliness. That's what it's always been about, Jake. Even that night when you found me when I came onto you, it was all just about feeling wanted. Then when I came back and Ryan didn't want me anymore, I found the same thing with Aidan. That's why it was so easy to go to Aidan two years ago. He made me feel wanted again and I used him for that. But then Ryan wants me back and Aidan started to let me go… I didn't care who it was, as long as someone could fill me up. That's what I just finished telling Ryan. I do care about him, but I don't truly love him and I never really did."

"But how do you know that I'm any different?" I want to know. I'm scared of what she might tell me, but I need to know this. "You said it yourself that I make you feel safe and loved. Maybe I'm just your latest filler?"

"No," she flashes me that beautiful smile. "Because it's like you said, Jake. We've done this story before. Only this time, you are the one that makes me unable to move on with someone else. I feel everything I've ever felt for Ryan, and yet – he's not you. That's how I know, Jake. I feel the difference. It's only the second time in my life when I could say with total certainty that I'm feeling the real thing. It's not about needing to feel myself being filled up to cover some cosmic emptiness anymore – it's about feeling you."

I smile a big goofy smile at the beautiful woman sitting on my lap and stroke her hair. "So what are you saying, Greenlee?" I ask in my ecstasy.

"I'm saying," she tells me as she caresses my cheek. "Leo might have been my soulmate; but you just might turn out to be the love of my life, Jake Martin."

Music to my ears. Greenlee wants me!!! Greenlee loves me!!! It's been a long time coming ever since I first wanted this.

She eases herself off of my lap and walks to door. I let out a groan, upset that she's leaving already.

"Just a second," she tells me. I turn around to see that I never completely closed the door to the office – something Greenlee takes care of right now. She leans herself back sexily against the shut door and I can't help but stare; I feel like I'm looking at the most beautiful creature on the planet. The way she is looking at me sends my body into a wave of passion.

"You're not going to turn me down this time, right?" she tells me with her seductress voice back on.

Not a chance in hell.


	9. Chapter 9

A knock at the door wakes me from my peaceful sleep. I look next to me and see Greenlee still lying there comfortably. I smile and find myself staring at the beautiful angel lying next to be; I can't even remember why I woke up in the first place.

_Knock knock_

Oh, that's right. Someone was at the door.

"Tell them to go away," I hear Greenlee moan.

I grab a pair of pants and shirt and go to answer the door. Ryan is standing there. My first thought is that fight club Lavery is here to give me a piece of his mind, but it doesn't look like he has come here for a fight. He says he just wants to talk. I come outside with him, not wanting to disturb Greenlee but also not wanting Ryan to see us together in case Greenlee never told him about that little nugget of information. It's smart not to take a chance with a guy like that.

"I assume Greenlee told you that we talked the other day," he tells me. His tone sounds something between sad and reflective. I tell him simply that she did, not wanting to tell him any information that might be new to him.

"Don't worry, I'm not here to pick a fight," he tells me, seeming to realize how uncomfortable I am feeling around him. "I just wanted to talk to you about her."

"What's on your mind?" I ask him.

"Well, Greenlee made it pretty clear how she feels about me. But she also brought up some things and made me take a critical look at myself as well. She helped me see my feelings in a better light too."

I'm not entirely sure why Ryan is telling me all this. Maybe he needs a sounding board for the thoughts that he seems to be having trouble dealing with.

He looks like he can tell that I'm willing to listen and begins to open up a little bit more. "Greenlee is one hell of a unique woman," he begins.

"Don't I know it?" I can't help but smile.

"There was always something about her that made me go crazy. I mean, there was no in between with her: either I hated her, or I was her willing slave for whatever she wanted. But she helped me see that whatever that was, it wasn't the real thing for me either. And if she hadn't suggested it I never would have been able to admit it, but she was the woman that I fell back on when I needed to get over someone or just got bored; because what was always there for her was the lust – still is actually. I don't have to tell you that she could probably stop the United States armed forces in its tracks with a twitch of her hips. But it's like she reminded me: when she had the real thing she was never able to deny the fact that she had it and that couldn't let her move on – something you know all too well. That's not what we had. It was too easy for me to love Kendall right after I thought she was dead. So was Greenlee really love?"

Ryan almost feels to me like he's upset with himself. Like he doesn't understand how he could let himself be blind for so long. I try to comfort him by putting my hand on his shoulder. "You were just trying to be loved," I tell him softly. "You can't blame yourself for that."

"No, I can't," he agrees. "But our entire relationship was sex. The second we started talking, only lies would come out. I even basically had to trick her into agreeing marrying me! But she was right. For the longest time I've been going from relationship to relationship feeling so desperate to feel the real thing again that every time I started over I had to convince myself that destiny was knocking on my door. When I couldn't trust Kendall, I convinced myself that Greenlee was the one I wanted. When Greenlee left me, I convinced myself that I was always in love with Kendall. When I couldn't have Kendall, I convinced myself that Annie was my fate. Later I tried to convince myself that it was always Greenlee. Then it was Kendall again." Ryan begins to shake his head at his frustration with himself. "That's not real," he tells me, sounding very disappointed. "That's me being so desperate to have the real thing again, like I used to have with Gillian, that I needed to trick myself into believing I had it."

"Why are you telling me all this, Ryan?" I want to know. I can't remember him ever being so open with me about anything like this before.

"Because I'm leaving town," he tells me. "I need to take my life back and start going about things the right way. And I just wanted to tell you that you have a very special lady that loves you – the real kind of love. So take good care of Greenlee. She deserves only the best and you better give that to her."

"Believe me, I will," I tell him and shake his extended hand. It's hard to believe that he has finally come to terms with his bed hopping and fickleness. Who would have thought Ryan Lavery would ever admit to himself what everyone else already knew??? But I do hope he finds what he's looking for.

I head back inside and find Greenlee lying on her back on the bed with her eyes open. It looks like she's been waiting for me.

She smiles when she sees me walk back in. "Who was it?" she asks me.

"A friend," I answer warmly. I'm amazed that after recent events that I can honestly call Ryan that.

"A friend who won't bother us again?" Greenlee tells me with a mischievous look in her eyes. She doesn't look like she wants to talk anymore.

I climb on top of her and kiss her forehead. Ryan was right, she deserves the best; and I'm going to do everything I can to make sure she feels like she has it. "I'm going to love you like you deserve to be loved again," I promise her. "We're not going to lie to each other and we're not going to play games with each other. I swear to you, all I want to do is make you insanely happy."

"Right back at you," Greenlee tells me. She bites down on her lip through her smile and puts her arms around my head. Even this early in the morning she still looks irresistible. My gaze is caught in her eyes until she pulls my head down to her, connecting our lips together softly at first and then growing more and more passionate by the second.

Something tells me I'm going to be late for work a lot.


End file.
